Stolen Kits
by Steve the Icecube
Summary: Spottedstar is leader of SmokeClan. She has three kits, who are only days old. She is out of camp for the first time in two moons, and they are stolen by StreamClan. Will she get her beloved kits back in a battle? Or should she try another way?
1. Chapter 1

**AN: Same sort of thing as The Sun Changes Nothing. There are different Clans, SmokeClan, StreamClan, FogClan and LightClan. This is a two-shot.**

"Spottedstar!" Reedfern called to his mate. She sighed, and looked down at her kits, Emberkit, Stormkit and Tinykit, who were still sleeping.

"I'm coming!" She mewed, looking over to Ashcloud, who nodded.

"I'll look after them. Just enjoy your patrol." She mewed kindly.

Spottedstar nodded and stood up, stretching. Today would be her first day out of camp for two moons, and she was on dawn patrol.

She smiled at her mate, and they leapt over the high stone wall surrounding camp, and headed to the StreamClan border.

Her mind went back to when she was still an apprentice, and the sun had disappeared. StreamClan had led her into their camp with her mentor Kestreldawn, and they'd waited their time out there until they could return. That was when she'd realised that she had a crush on Reedfern.

And now she was leader, with him as her mate.

She looked over the border, hoping to spot Foxtalon, a friendly loner who lived on StreamClan territory. She used to be a Clan cat, but she had decided Clan life was not for her, but the Clan permitted her living there so long as she did not take more than one fish a day from their territory. In return, she helped the Clan train their apprentices.

But there was no sign of her then.

Suddenly, Spottedstar caught a StreamClan scent inside their border, skirting round towards Manywillows. She signalled to Reedfern, who nodded, and they followed the trail.

After the scent reached Manywillows, it went straight into SmokeClan territory. Spottedstar looked at her mate, alarmed. They knew that cats were out on patrol at that time!

They pelted along the scent trail, losing it only once near a mud patch, where the cats had tried to disguise the scent, but failed.

It led to camp.

Spottedstar's breathing quickened as she ran to camp. _My kits, are they safe?_

_Tinykit, Emberkit, Stormkit, please be safe!_

High pitched mewls filled the air, and Spottedstar saw a streak of grey run towards StreamClan territory.

_Clawstar!_

A ginger cat pelted away from camp, and Spottedstar stood frozen with terror.

Finally, a bracken-coloured tom with smears of mud on his pelt leapt over the stone wall.

Spottedstar ran into the camp, leaping into the turmoil.

Ashcloud was wailing from the nursery, and no kits were mewling in there.

Fury clouding her eyes, Spottedstar leapt onto the ledge. "Gather for a meeting!" She yowled.

Most cats were already there, their fur bristling.

"Clawstar has taken my kits!"

Yowls of fury came from below her, echoing Spottedstar's own feelings.

"We must get them back!"

She leapt from the rock, and started going around the cats, telling them what to do. "We will attack at dusk, when the smoke settles. We will attack in two waves, the first from one side, the other from the far side of camp.

"The second wave will be bigger, consiting of myself, the senior warriors and the apprentices.

"All the rest will be in the first wave, except for Yellowheart and Flowerpaw, who will be at the edge of StreamClan territory, ready to treat cats. Myself and Reedfern will get my kits, and Hollowpaw, Goldenpaw and Redpaw will get them back to Flowerpaw and Yellowheart, who will take them back to camp."


	2. Chapter 2

As the smoke settled on the camp, the tension reached its climax.

Ashcloud was sitting by the entrance of the nursery, and Goldentail was standing by the entrance to the elder's den, being the only elder fit enough to defend camp.

The first patrol left camp, leaping over the stone wall, the younger apprentices bristling with excitement at their first battle.

Spottedstar's heart was in her throat. Were her kits okay? Were they safe? Alive, even?

Surely Clawstar would not kill kits.

Or would he?

A few minutes later, the first patrol should be a fox-length from the border by then, the second patrol set off, and the smoke was so thick Spottedstar could only use her whiskers to guide herself, as all SmokeClan cats could do from birth.

Unless they tasted milk from another Clan's queen. And that was partly what Spottedstar was worried about.

What if Clawstar intended on keeping the kits, and had a queen give them milk?

They would lose an ability vital to their life.

Her paws raced faster as she led her Clanmates on through the smoke.

* * *

Spottedstar could hear the yowls of the battle, and the mewls of terrified kits. Her own, maybe?

She signalled with her tail to Reedfern, and they both plunged towards camp, the other warriors following.

The moment she hit the battle, she smelt blood. A StreamClan apprentice lay on the ground, bleeding. Her blood flowed into a stream, which seemed to branch around camp, sloping down into their dens.

A milk scent came from one, and Spottedstar pelted towards it, and burst into the nursery.

She stopped short as several kits jumped on her, claws unsheathed.

A light grey tom, a dark grey tom, and a tiny silver she-kit. They were snarling, and she shook them off, surprised.

Her kits weren't there.

"Where are they?" She hissed to the queen who was there.

"I don't know!" The queen answered. "Foxtalon took them."

Spottedstar sprang out of the nursery, nearly trampling one of the kits.

"SmokeClan, retreat!" She called, fleeing the camp, her Clanmates shooting final insults at their enemies and leaving their fights.

Redpaw trailed slightly behind, and his mentor, Flightsky, went back to help him.

Otherwise, there were no major wounds, although the younger apprentices seemed shocked.

She sent them and their mentors to the border, while she went to where she knew Foxtalon lived.


End file.
